Highlights of Poland

(8 Days - Departs Daily on a Private Basis)Gdansk, Warsaw, Krakow

This private luxury tour takes in Poland's top cultural and scenic attractions from north to south, including atmospheric riverside towns, ancient castles, historic sites, beautiful mountains and an abundance of stunning UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Begin in Gdansk, a historic port city on the Baltic Sea and the birthplace of the Solidarity movement. Tour the backstreets, squares and canals of the Old Town and the surrounding region, including Gdynia and Sopot, a fashionable seaside resort.

En route to Warsaw, visit Malbork, a massive medieval castle built by the Teutonic Knights, or Torun, a well-preserved medieval town and the birthplace of Nicolaus Copernicus. Both are UNESCO World Heritage sites.

In Warsaw, an energetic capital city filled with beautiful parks and a unique architectural legacy, enjoy flexible private touring of the charming Old Town, which rose phoenix-like from near total destruction during World War II. See the renovated palaces of the embassy district and monuments of Poland’s Communist era. Visit the Palace on the Water, surrounded by the beautiful English gardens of Lazienki Park. Tour the comprehensive POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews and sites associated with Warsaw’s once-large Jewish population, such as the Jewish Ghetto and the atmospheric Jewish cemetery. Walk along the Royal Way, stopping in upscale boutiques and food shops in the reconstructed townhouses lining the boulevard, and perhaps see the unique memorial to Frederic Chopin, a local hero.

Next, transfer by private car through farmland and forests to Krakow, Poland’s well-preserved cultural capital. Stop en route in Auschwitz to see one of the most notorious sites of Nazi Germany’s genocidal program. If desired, also stop in Czestochowa to visit stunning Jasna Gora Monastery, a major pilgrimage site and the spiritual heart of Catholic Poland.

In Krakow, tour the Old Town, including the Wawel, the hilltop royal castle and cathedral. Visit churches decorated with stunning Art Nouveau interiors, see Leonardo da Vinci’s Lady with an Ermine at the Czartoryski Museum, explore the best boutiques around Florianska Street, relax in the outdoor cafes in the vast Market Square, and visit the Rynek Underground museum to learn about the city’s past. Also, tour Kazimierz, the old Jewish district, to see historic synagogues with beautiful stained glass and decorated interiors, as well as the old Jewish cemetery and quiet backstreets. Other options include touring the former Jewish Ghetto and seeing Oskar Schindler’s Enamel Factory, immortalized in the film Schindler's List. One evening, enjoy a concert of music by Polish composers.

One day, take an excursion to Wieliczka Salt Mine, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that has been in use for 700 years and is filled with sculptures, friezes and chapels miners carved from salt.

Upon request, Artisans of Leisure can also arrange excursions from Warsaw to Zelazowa Wola, the birthplace of Chopin; the well-preserved 19th-century factory town of Lodz; Lublin and nearby Majdanek concentration camp; the memorial to Treblinka death camp; or Kazimierz Dolny, a charming riverside town filled with historic architecture and popular among artists. From Krakow, Artisans of Leisure can also arrange excursions to Zakopane, a resort town at the base of the beautiful Tatra Mountains; Kalwaria Zebrzydowska, a Catholic pilgrimage route and UNESCO World Heritage Site; and sites related to the Young Poland movement, such as the Stanislaw Wyspianski Museum and House of Jozef Mehoffer.

Artisans of Leisure can also incorporate other special activities in Poland, such as Polish cooking classes, meeting with Jewish scholars, and researching family history and genealogy.